So we’ve already heard about the reports of the HTC One facing shortages in its Ultrapixel cameras, however that news has been confirmed today by HTC itself. However, not only is HTC facing shortages in its Ultrapixel cameras, the company is also seeing supply shortages in its metal casings as well. HTC has informed many of its resellers, including Best Buy and Vodafone, of the shipping delays and shortages.

An executive at HTC stated that the supply issues are due to suppliers no longer considering HTC a “tier-one customer”. The executive stated that the main reason for this is because of HTC’s rapid decline in smartphone shipments last year, and its frequent and drastic changes in shipment forecasts. HTC is currently working as quickly as possible to work out these supply kinks in order to fulfill HTC One pre-orders by the end of the month. It hopes to ship the HTC One out to several markets at the beginning of April.

HTC has placed all of its cards on HTC One, and it may be its last chance of getting itself out of its financial predicament. HTC’s Peter Chou has even staked his job on the line, saying that if the HTC One fails, he will step down as CEO. In order to make sure the HTC One succeeds, HTC will be going all-out with marketing this year, and has even hired a new marketing chief to take point on its campaigns.

Due to its huge delay in shipments, the HTC One faces very tough competition. Had it been able to ship its device out mid-March like it had planned, HTC would have been able to grab enough sales to stay afloat, but now it has to deal with the likes of Samsung’s GALAXY S 4 as well as Sony’s Xperia Z. And HTC’s marketing will most likely be outshined by Samsung’s, who spent $401 million in advertising alone last year compared to HTC’s measly 60 million. However, HTC’s HTC One has been well received so far by critics and consumers alike, so hopefully the power of word-of-mouth advertising is enough to make the device a success.

[via The Wall Street Journal] [device id= 4676]